


Ghost Protocol

by iloveitblue



Series: Prompts [91]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: M/M, One sided William Brandt/Ethan Hunt - Freeform, but its next to nonexistent, there's flirting tho
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-05
Updated: 2015-07-11
Packaged: 2018-02-16 04:42:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,207
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2256264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iloveitblue/pseuds/iloveitblue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The one where Phil is with his team and Clint (Brandt) is with his.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [narnia2375](https://archiveofourown.org/users/narnia2375/gifts).



> "Brandt, I lost her. She’s headed your way." Ethan yelled over the comms.

"How the hell do you lose a 20-something girl?" Clint bit back, waiting for their target to either walk or run by. "You’ve hunted down and killed men twice her size."

"Shut up, Brandt." Clint could see him rolling his eyes at him. 

"Suck my dick." Clint told him with a huff, utterly enjoying Hunt’s slip.

"Name the time and place." Ethan said with a smug tone.

"Ew. Okay, not the time guys. You’re not alone on this line." Dunn scolded them. "You can flirt in your own ti-"

"I got her, she still has the package." Clint interrupted, slung a hand around Jane and they walked out of the corner together, pretending to be a couple. 

Clint trained his eye on their target, then he saw it. The package, a laptop, was inside a carrying case that bore the SHIELD logo, facing inward. Clint leaned into Jane’s ear, and she pretended to laugh at something while Clint whispered. 

"Who is she? what do we know about her?" He asked Benji.

"What’s wrong Brandt?" Ethan tried but Clint ignored him. 

"She’s uh- Her name is-" There were sounds of furious typing and clicking. "I can’t find her anywhere."

"Damn it." Clint cursed and left Jane. He ran up to the girl and grabbed her by the shoulder. 

She tried to throw him over her shoulder, but Clint was fast enough to draw away. “Whoa. Not here to hurt you.” He tried to explain to big brown eyes. “Who are you?”

"Brandt? Brandt, what are you doing?! You were not supposed to engage. Brandt!" He could hear Ethan yelling at him as he took out his earpiece. 

"What are you doing?" He heard Jane ask him. He ignored her.

"Tell me. Who do you work for?" He asked the girl instead. She tried to reach for her gun, and he let her. He heard the click of a gun just as Jane stepped up beside him.

"Put the gun down." Jane told her. She didn’t waver. 

"Jane, no. I-"

"I think you should put down yours." A new voice came from behind Clint and Jane, a man carrying the same type of gun that the girl was carrying said. 

Clint saw movement from behind the girl and when he turned, a man in aviators stood next to her. “I’d do what he says, if I were you.”

"Phil?"

For a long moment, Coulson did nothing but stare at him, then he removed his aviators and tucked them inside his suit, “Skye, go back to the Bus. Bring Tripp with you.”

"But-" The girl protested.

"Now, Skye." She put her gun away and walked with the other man.

"Jane, give us a second please." Jane left without another word. 

When they were all alone, Clint said “You’re alive.” He could barely believe it. He wouldn’t if the man wasn’t standing in front of him.

Phil sighed. “It’s nice to see you again.”

"You’re alive. I thought- Natasha said- and Fury, he-" Clint didn’t need to finish his sentences or make coherent thoughts. He knew that Coulson knew what he was trying to say. 

"They weren’t lying. Just so you know. I did die. I just… came back. Fury needed me back on the field."

"H-How?" Clint stammered.

"That’s not important."

"But I- SHIELD is dead. What’re you-" Clint hated this. Hated the way his voice shook at the sight of Phil in front of him again. He wanted to shout at Phil. He wanted to be angry but he knew that the man had no choice in the matter, if his story was to be believed. Fury had brought him back, when he died. Obviously, Phil had no choice in that. Still, the betrayal of Phil keeping this a secret made Clint want to punch the man. He was finally moving on too. 

And now, he was getting reeled back in, faster than he can tell himself no.

"I was tasked to build it back up. I wanted to ask you and Natasha to work with me, but I-" He huffed a soft laugh. "I didn’t know how you’d take the news of my…"

"Not dead after all act?" Clint finished for him.

"I was going to say resurrection, but I guess that works too. If I was being honest, I would say I was scared to find out. I didn’t want- You were healing, moving on. I couldn’t just-"

"Phil, stop. Please." Phil looked at him. "I love you, I never stopped. I wanted to. So bad. But I couldn’t. You know I’d go back with you in a heartbeat."

"But?"

"I can’t. Not just yet. I have to finish my mission with these guys." Phil nodded in understanding. "They’re great. You should meet them sometime." Clint smiled.

Phil mirrored his smile. “I’d love to. And you should meet mine. You’ll adore Skye.” Clint nodded. “You know how to reach me.”

"Same frequency?"

"No one’s listening to that anymore, anyway." Phil smiled, and Clint grinned.

"What was in that laptop anyway and why do people want it?" Clint asked.

"It’s the last of SHIELD’s secrets. Everything Fury knows."

"Oh, then I guess we’ll have to keep it from getting into the wrong hands."

"That’s what SHIELD is for."


	2. Chapter 2

The thing was, Ethan had moved on. 

Admittedly, it wasn’t all that smooth a ride but the important thing was that he was able to move on. Brandt helped with that. He showed Ethan that it was possible to move on from lost loves, be happy, and possibly find someone else who made you feel like you did before. 

That someone was William Brandt for Ethan.

"I’m leaving." Clint told the room, his team lounging about.

"Be sure to get a six-pack for the fridge." Dunn called out with a wave. 

That made Clint smile but it was gone just as soon. 

"William, honey. Is something wrong?" Jane asked him, putting her files down.

"I- I don’t mean leaving like going out. I mean for good. I’m leaving for good." That got all of their attention. "It was great working with you guys. Awesome, even. I just, I haven’t been all that truthful to all of you when I joined your team."

"And we’ve forgiven you for it." Ethan said, not quite believing what he’s hearing right now. "You don’t have to feel guilty-"

"I’m not. Not after I found out that she’s-" Clint stopped short. That wasn’t what he was going to talk to them about. "My name is Clint Barton. I was first sent in to Ethan’s case to protect him and his wife as Agent William Brandt. I am, and I always will be, a SHIELD agent. Although I guess that name bears no more recognition since its fall." The room was quiet now. Everyone hanging on Clint’s every word.

"Clint Barton? As in the Clint Barton? the Avenger?” Benjie asked with a disbelieving laugh. “You’re kidding right?”

Clint took a chopstick from Benjie’s cold Chinese take-out and threw it at the tacky moose head decor above their fireplace with enough force to make it stick to the center of the moose’s skull. Then, he took a pocket knife and threw it so that it split the chopstick in perfect halves. 

All three agents stared at the moose for a while. “Okay, you’re not kidding.” Benjie concluded.

"SHIELD needs me. I have to go back." Clint told them. "I’m not asking for your permission. I just thought that you all wanted to know instead of me just leaving you with unanswered questions."

"But you’re not leaving us for SHIELD, are you?" Ethan asked. "Not really. That man last week, when you let the target escape. He’s your missing husband, isn’t he?"

Clint stood still for a moment before he nodded. 

Ethan snorted. “I haven’t seen anyone look at someone like that since I looked at my wife like that.” Ethan wasn’t one to express emotions beyond what’s on the surface, but he found that he really didn’t care right now. “He still loves you.” Clint smiled wistfully. “And you still love him.”

"Ethan, I’m sorry. I didn’t-"

"No. It’s not your fault. You shouldn’t be apologizing. I’m glad to have met you. Even if I didn’t actually get to know the real you, apparently. You should go back to your husband." Ethan smiled at him.

Clint nodded once. “If you ever need my help… You’ll know how to reach me. If I’m not the one who answers, then it’s probably one of the other Avengers. Tell them you know me, and any one of them will be able to help you.”

"Well, that’s a mighty fine farewell gift." Jane commented. "The Avengers, at our beck and call."

"Don’t abuse it." Clint chastised.

Jane held up her hands in surrender and Clint smiled. She moved up to give him a hug and he hugged back. “Take care of yourself, okay?” 

"Phil’s got my back."

"Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do." Benjie told him, holding out his hand.

Clint smirked and took it. “Half of the things I do, you wouldn’t do, Benjie.”

Benjie shrugged.

"Don’t lose him again." Ethan told him, holding his hand out as well.

Clint huffed a soft laugh and took Ethan’s hand before pulling him into a hug. “Never again. Thanks, Hunt.”

"Thank you, Will- Clint." He gave Clint a kiss on the cheek and Clint laughed. 

Yes, Ethan Hunt had moved on from the pain of losing his wife because of William Brandt but that didn’t mean Brandt was supposed to stay with him.

Maybe in time, he can move on from William Brandt as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Here on tumblr](http://promptmephlint.tumblr.com/post/107903548151/my-head-hurts-so-much-i-think-im-running-a)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “Okay, guys. Head in the game.” Clint said into the mic. He had JARVIS patch him in through a secure line with the Avengers and SHIELD. “Stark, there’s more on your tail, try to find a narrow corner. They don’t turn well. Cap, Widow. Back against each other. Cmon guys. This isn’t amateur hour.”

“Bird brain?” Tony sounded confused. “Are you out of the tower? Because if you are and Agent finds out-”

Natasha snorted. “What’s the matter, Stark? Are you scared?”

“Hell fucking yes. I think if Agent wanted me gone, nobody could even prove I existed.” Stark sounded so panicked, it made Steve laugh. mid-mission while punching the alien of the week.

“The many benefits of having Coulson as an ally, then.” Steve added.

“Clint, where the fuck are you? If JARVIS so much as let your bony ass out of the tower-”

“Relax, I’m safe. And excuse you, my ass is fantastic. Stark, double your speed. You’ve got more incoming.” Clint relayed. 

“Easier for you to say. I swear, I am going to build all of you jet packs if I have to. Thor and I being the only ones airborne is extremely inefficient when Thor is in Asgard.”

“Don’t worry, I got you back-up.” Clint grinned. “Benjie? You there?”

“You know, I didn’t think this was what you meant when you said you’d get in touch.” Clint could hear Benjie rolling his eyes at him, along with the furious tapping on his laptop.

“Benjie? Who’s Benjie?” Tony intervened. “Is he back-up?”

“And I didn’t think I’d be stuck in a van when I’m supposed to be helping save the world. Where’s Jane and Hunt?”

“ETA 60 seconds. Was that Iron Man? That was Iron man, wasn’t it? Omygod.”

“Benjie, heal.”

“Fuck you, W- Clint.”

“Who’s Benjie? And who’s Jane and Hunt?”

“Jane and Hunt on your six, Stark. Dive, now.”

It rained bullets just as Tony went for the dive. He looked back up to see a fighter plane with SHIELD’s logo on the side. “Oh, so that’s Jane and Hunt.” He gave a tiny salute to the pilots before flying off, coaxing more aliens to follow him then having Jane and Hunt shoot them. 

After that, it was a fairly easy win, with Clint telling them what they needed to know and telling Cap where the intergalactic portal was after he and Benjie figured out where it was hidden.

\---

“Good job, Avengers.” Phil congratulated as the Avengers sans Clint came in to debriefing. 

As soon as Tony’s eyes landed on Clint standing next to Phil, he let out a wolf whistle. “Looking sharp, Barton.” Tony waggled his eyebrows.

“Take a picture. It’ll last longer.” 

“Already did, sweetpea. JARVIS, my man, save it in the remote servers, will you?” Tony grinned cheekily.

Clint narrowed his eyes at Stark with no real heat in it. He had to admit, he looked damn fine in a suit. 

Steve gave the three other people in the room. “We’re thankful for the assist.”

“No problem.” Ethan nodded back.

“Moving on, Avengers, this is Benjie Dunn, Jane Carter, and Ethan Hunt. Old colleagues of mine. Great friends. I helped them saved the world once or twice.”

“Benjie, Jane, Ethan, these are the Avengers sans Thor and Hulk. I helped them save the world once or twice.” Clint grinned. 

Everyone rolled their eyes at Clint but Clint knew, this was the start of a beautiful friendship. Or at least collaboration when the world was in danger.

**Author's Note:**

> [Here on tumblr](http://promptmephlint.tumblr.com/post/96661541901/the-one-sided-thing-is-next-to-non-existent-im)
> 
>  
> 
> [Send me request here](http://promptmephlint.tumblr.com/ask) so i can add it to my queue.


End file.
